By Our Reporter
SHILLONG, Nov 19: Chief Minister Conrad Sangma has expressed concern that the state government is not achieving the desired impact in the education sector despite spending a substantial Rs 3,600 crore annually.
The chief minister made the remark while inaugurating the first Ramakrishna Mission College in the Northeast at Sohra on Wednesday.
Addressing the gathering, Sangma said the government allocates nearly 15 per cent of its budget to education, and while finances are not a constraint, the expected improvements in quality and outcomes are still lacking.
Drawing a comparison between Meghalaya and Tripura, he noted that Tripura, with a population of 40 lakh, has around 4,000 schools, whereas Meghalaya, with a population of 38 lakh, has nearly 14,000 schools. “There are 40,000 teachers in Tripura, while here we have 55,000,” he said, adding that having too many schools and teachers without a strong monitoring system can pose challenges.
Highlighting the complexities within the Education Department, Sangma said that in many cases, different sections of the same school are run by different managing committees, resulting in a lack of continuity.
He further informed that around 2,400 schools in Meghalaya have either single-digit enrolment or no students at all. There are also instances where teachers of different categories serve within the same school. “This complex web of issues makes it difficult for us despite spending one of the highest amounts on education,” he said, adding that the Government has initiated the process of rationalisation to address these challenges.
The chief minister said that creating proper structures for ad hoc and SSA teachers will give them some level of security and will eventually facilitate the rationalisation of schools.
He emphasised that students should remain the guiding force behind every decision in education, and announced that the Government will ensure electricity connection to all schools in the state on a mission mode.
The newly inaugurated Ramakrishna Mission College will begin with Arts and Science streams and aims to provide accessible, affordable, and value-based higher education to the youth of Sohra and neighbouring rural districts.
Swami Achyuteshananda, in his address, described the inauguration as a historic moment for the Northeast, noting that “history remembers the first,” and that the first Ramakrishna Mission college in the region has been established under the leadership of Chief Minister Conrad K Sangma.
He reaffirmed the Mission’s commitment to expanding its contributions to Meghalaya through academic collaborations, teacher capacity-building initiatives, and programmes aligned with the aspirations of the region’s youth.
The event, attended by senior monks of the Ramakrishna Mission—including Swami Achyuteshananda, Trustee of Ramakrishna Math & Mission, Belur Math, and Swami Anuragananda—as well as MLAs Balajied Kupar Synrem (Shella) and Gavin Miguel Mylliem (Sohra), along with community members, marked a significant milestone in expanding higher education in the hill regions of the state.
